By Tim Binnall
An Indonesian official's headline-making decision to house coronavirus quarantine-breaking individuals in a haunted house has proven to be a rather clever tactic when it comes to convincing residents to adhere to the lockdown. After a handful of residents had disobeyed orders to stay at home for two weeks to ensure that the virus did not spread, Kusdinar Untung Yuni Sukowati decided that she would lock them inside of a haunted house to teach them a lesson.
The unorthodox method for enforcing social distancing understandably made news around the world and, it turns out, was a tremendous success. In an update to the story, the three men imprisoned in the haunted house reportedly begged authorities to free them after only three days because they were having terrifying dreams. "One of them even cried out of fear and boredom," explained the village chief. Although the men apparently did not see any ghosts, the mere prospect of sharing a home with some sinister spirits was more than they could bear.
As such, officials eventually agreed to let the three people go back to their homes with the promise that they would not break quarantine again, since now they knew that the would wind up back in the haunted house. Amazingly, this concern also extended to other residents of the area who vowed to also adhere to the lockdown lest they be forced to endure the same spooky punishment. Whether such a tactic would work here in America is debatable, since we know more than a few ghost hunters who would be thrilled to be locked inside a haunted house during their downtime.